Moments of Dahlia

This just happened.

State College dahlias, holding out in the cold fall air. 

How hardy am I? 

I am not at all, and rely on my bath and fleece and down to get me through. 

I understand when my water bill goes up from too much bathing, and suddenly the charm of an old house becomes a bit less charming. 

Our drafty windows and cold floors make me wonder where summer has gone. 

The dahlias remind me. 

Some Kind of Winter

This has been a heckuva winter. The extremely cold temps for this area have made me stop complaining about the regular coldness of winter, the kind that makes 43 degrees seem like not-so-bad. Even if it's freezing out, winter is still pretty. And, yesterday I heard birds singing in the morning and then I saw a robin...and we know what that means, right?

Flowers in Winter, Or Always

It had been a while since we layered up and hiked into the woods, just a little amble through the Michaux. The kids were cute and held hands and fell down a few times. 

Winter is always a mental challenge for me because there is so little green and so much brown. But there were still moments of beauty among the pervasive brownness of the woods at this time of year. 

But still, look at the flowers!

I liked getting lost in the reflection of this little pool...

...and in a pile of rocks. I'm wondering how closeup my camera will go?

And then at the end, some old dessicated pumpkins made a nice arrangement. 

The woods surprised me with more than I expected. I wonder, if I walked forward with delight,

how often I would see flowers everywhere?

As Ready As I Could Ever Be

It's here! I found proof in the woods that despite my doubts that winter would ever end, spring has actually arrived. We took the kids to the Michaux to run about and play. They were worried that they would be bored without any electronics, but it seriously took about twelve seconds for them to start skipping and playing their imaginary game.

It took forever, but now is the time. Dust the cobwebs off your boots and lace up! I am laying in supplies, like my new ultralight spork, for adventures to come. I might be able to navigate a bit by the north star. 

Does anyone want to come with me? 

The woods are waiting. 

Maybe I will see you there! 

Ice Blanket

I have been fussing about the weather lately, but winter really does provide some good opportunities to look at things from a different perspective. Last week we had lots of ice that only lasted for about a day, but it sure was purty! 

I went outside in my jammies for just a few minutes to take some pictures, and the sound of ice-covered branches crackling in the wind was super cool. 

I got really cold about now because my pj's were not cut out for this weather. Enough art for today!

                          

Sunny Day Sunshine

My blog brain is empty, so I looked around for some happy pictures from sunny days gone by. 

If spring is a state of mind, I'm moving!

I tell myself one more time, that we are closer to spring today than we've ever been!

Winter is the New Spring

things are getting green around here

which 

makes me wonder 

where we are going?

50/366 winter wheat, and sky

kinda strange, isn't spring lovely?

i asked for moments of beauty

guess i just need to pay attention?

6/365 Forced, But Appreciated

Grocery Store To Feature Spring, Despite Time of Year

Fearless on the Rainiest Day in the World

The annual field day at PSU Mont Alto was a terrible affair, with Eazy-E up tent frames having been mashed in the wind, an icy drizzle, and a few hundred people hovering awkwardly in a too-small tent. L. was excited because there was FREE TEA in the tent, which meant she could get hopped up on Splenda. J. Rebecca was our star of the day, and had the fortitude to not only climb a tall oak tree, but to do so in the rain and as fast as possible. Up, up, up she went until she got to ring the bell of victory, or at least the bell of completion. In the past year I have been impressed by her singular approach to making her education happen and being fully invested in the process, whether it be by talkin' trees with Paul G or climbing them! 

I have been thinking a lot about scale lately, for example with this picture it seems fairly lackluster on the small screen, but I imagine it big, like 16x20 or 24x36 ...does it make the picture any better? I love the winter landscapes that are sparse and minimal. I like to think about how it would be to look at this picture when we are deep in the juicy muck of spring, when the peach trees are buzzing. 

Expect your every need to be met, expect the answer to every problem, expect abundance on every level, expect to grow spiritually.

- Eileen Caddy